


I had no clue (it was gonna be you)

by Theshipships



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, For the most part, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Still Cannon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:34:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25572160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Theshipships/pseuds/Theshipships
Summary: After half a year of learning about things that should have been impossible in her old world, the muggle world, this seemed by far the most ridiculous...
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Luna Lovegood
Comments: 8
Kudos: 136





	1. It feels like I'm searching for the truth

**Author's Note:**

> In order to make the story work the way I wanted it to I’ve adjusted some things such as Ginny and Luna’s birthdays (I know Ginny’s is over the summer and Luna’s should be in February, but I liked this pacing better, sue me) and how long Luna was at Shell Cottage. Don’t @ me, just call it creative license. 
> 
> Disclaimer - I didn't write Harry Potter, all credit to original author and all that.

Hermione was 11 when she’d first heard about soulmates. After half a year of learning about things that should have been impossible in her old world, the muggle world, this seemed by far the most ridiculous. 

“So you’re telling me that my soulmate MIGHT be the person I’m meant to be with. Or they could be my best friend, or they could be someone I’m literally meant to love and lose. And no one knows why, and we’re all just supposed to be okay with this?!”

Ron looked surprised by her outburst. “Well, yeah? It’s not like people haven’t studied it Hermione. It’s just that we don’t know. And for the most part it works out for people so it’s a good thing, yeah?”

Hermione had never been the kind of child to just accept that things were the way they were, even if the things she was supposed to be accepting were supposedly ‘good’. She stared at the two sixth years who were currently blushing and examining each other’s marks. She had no idea who either of them were but by the look of it neither of them were particularly happy with the situation. How was this supposed to be something good?

“This is ridiculous. There’s no such thing as soulmates.” She huffed, convinced in the way only a child refusing to see new information could be. 

Ron shrugged his shoulders. “You can think what you want Hermione. But my parents are soulmates and I’ve seen plenty of them.”

The two sixth years continued to talk awkwardly as Hermione watched. Other people around the room were staring too, but theirs were mostly looks of jealousy. Hermione, on the other hand, was silently hoping that she never experienced that sort of awkward encounter. Anyways, she had another 5 years at least until she had to deal with it. Plenty of time to research.

“I’m heading to the library.” She stood up, ignoring the exasperated look Ron was giving Harry. She would ask Madam Pince where to start. 

____________________________________________

Being best friends with Harry Potter kept Hermione plenty busy, which meant she didn’t have much time to dwell on soulmates and marks after her initial research. A year came and went. They recovered the Sorcerer’s stone and Harry faced Voldemort for the first time since he was an infant. Over the summer Hermione tried to enjoy the time with her parents but struggled settling back into her routine in the Muggle world when she knew about the wonder and excitement she was missing. 

Second year went much the same way as the first. A message was scrawled on the wall, Harry heard voices, and they were neck deep in another adventure. This time Hermione was even more motivated. This Chamber, the monster, they were aiming for people like Hermione. And Hermione, who was experiencing the feeling of being one foot in and one foot out of the two disparate worlds she inhabited, refused to take that lying down. 

It wasn’t until after she’d been woken up by Madam Pomfrey at the end of the year that she got her second real look at soulmates. The girl on the bed beside her, Clearwater she remembered, woke up and immediately checked her soulmark. In neat, precise handwriting on her wrist was the phrase _“Did you get made a Prefect too?”_ Hermione didn’t have to wait long to discover the owner of the handwriting before Percy Weasley showed up by her bedside looking distraught. His soulmark wasn’t visible, but he kept rubbing at his shoulder as if it brought him comfort so she assumed the matching mark was there. 

On the train ride home, after Ginny informed them of Percy and Penelope’s relationship, Hermione told Harry and Ron about the soulmark. 

“They’d met before that though, right? So why that phrase?”

Ron shrugged. “It must have been the first thing they said after both of them turned 16. That’s usually the way it works.”

Hermione considered that. “It’s strange to think that you could have known your supposed soulmate your whole life and never know it.”

Ron snorted. “My mom swears she knew Dad was her soulmate from the first time they met, even though they were 11. I don’t think I believe her though.”

Beside them Harry looked pensive. “Hagrid said my parents were soulmates. I wish I knew what their marks said.”

Neither Hermione nor Ron had a response for that.

____________________________________________

By third year Hermione had seen enough people discover their soulmates to be used to it. She still thought the whole idea was crazy, but she hardly paused when Oliver Wood and a sixth year Hufflepuff she vaguely recognized from Quidditch discovered each other in the Great Hall one morning and proceeded to argue loudly about each other’s quidditch preferences. 

Between Sirius Black and Buckbeak (and of course the constant fights with Ronald) she didn’t have much time to think about anything. Not to mention her ridiculous attempt to use the time turner to take every class possible. She finished third year exhausted and almost looking forward to summer with her parents. 

When summer actually came though Hermione missed the frantic pace of Hogwarts. She also missed the feeling of being able to be completely herself without hiding, so she was ecstatic when she received Ron’s owl asking if she’d come stay at the Burrow and go to the Quidditch World Cup with them. She didn’t have any particular affinity for the sport if Harry wasn’t playing, but she was fascinated by the idea of actually seeing foreign witches and wizards and not just reading about them. 

The summer also gave her an opportunity to get to know Ginny beyond the polite greetings they’d given each other before. Hermione really like the younger witch. She was clever and funny, and much more capable than Ron gave her credit for. She also wasn’t obsessed with soulmarks the way some of the other girls were. While she had a very obvious crush on Harry she didn’t feel the need to constantly discuss it, which suited Hermione just fine. She wasn’t particularly good at “girl talk”. Most of the girls in her year, particularly Lavender and Parvati, thought she was weird because of her love of school and distaste of soulmates. 

She couldn’t say much about the Quidditch part of the World Cup experience, but after the adrenaline faded from their first encounter with the Dark Mark Hermione had found her purpose. She threw herself into combating the obvious injustice that allowed a being like Winky to be so thoroughly dismissed and thrown away. Honestly for a society with so much wonder at their fingertips, it never failed to shock her how willing they were to accept an unjust status quo. 

“I just don’t get it! How are you okay with this?” She paced back and forth in their room at the Burrow. 

Laying on the bed, Ginny shrugged. “It’s just the way it is Hermione.”

 _Just the way it is._ “I hate that phrase.”

____________________________________________

Fourth year came and went. She spent her time worrying about Harry, which honestly was a constant state of being now, and throwing herself into her mission of forcing Wizarding society to see how awful they were treating house elves. The Triwizard Tournament was exciting, but honestly Hermione could have done without the stress. 

The Tournament did introduce her first romantic experience. Viktor Krum was older and already marked, but he insisted that soulmates were ridiculous and that he refused to be controlled by a mark on his skin. Hermione was sure there was more to that story, but she was so caught up by having someone feel the same way about soulmates that she did that she never asked. Their relationship wasn’t deep or something she thought would last, but it was something she choose for herself. 

“So, are you and Krum going to keep seeing each other?” Ginny peered at her over the top of her book as they tried to avoid Mrs. Weasley forcing them to clean at Grimmauld Place that summer. 

Hermione sighed, “Probably not. There’s too much going on right now.”

Ginny nodded, “I guess You-Know-Who really puts a damper on romance. Plus, you turn 16 this year Hermione. I know you don’t believe in soulmates or whatever, but you could get your mark.”

 _Hopefully not._ Hermione thought, and returned to her book.

____________________________________________

Hermione’s 16th birthday was only a few weeks after the beginning of their Fifth year. She was the first in their dorm to turn 16, and she was woken up by an excited Parvati and Lavender, who insisted on checking her over for a soulmark. Hermione held her breath the entire time, and only released it when they disappointedly confirmed there was nothing there. 

“Your soulmate must be younger than you Hermione.” Lavender said after she returned to her bed. “But almost everyone boy in our year is, so it could still be one of them.”

Parvati giggled, “Imagine if it was Neville.”

Hermione levelled her with a look, “I like Neville Parvati, don’t be mean.”

The other girl flipped her black hair over her shoulder, “Neville is nice, but I’d like my soulmate to be a bit better looking.”

Hermione didn’t bother to argue that not all soulmates are romantic, or that at least Neville was thoughtful. Instead she turned around to begin dressing for the day. This likely wouldn’t be the only conversation on soulmarks she was forced to endure on her birthday. 

____________________________________________

If someone had told her she’d meet someone she hated more than she hated Rita Skeeter, she would have scoffed. But Dolores Umbridge was the epitome of Hermione’s worst nightmares. Her fifth year became a blur of frustration over the injustice brought to the school by the Ministry and _that woman_ and the now nearly constant talk about soulmates. Since a majority of their year mates would turn 16 this year it seemed like someone was getting their soulmark every time she turned around. 

Despite Parvati’s remarks, Hannah Abbot looked plenty happy when one morning during Herbology she and Neville discovered they were a match. The blush on Neville’s face was adorable, and for the first time since learning about soulmates Hermione had a positive feeling about them. Dean and Seamus were next, both extremely pleased by their matching _“Morning Mate”_ marks. They were Hermione’s first experience with platonic soulmates and she thought if she had to be marked that was what she wanted. 

Ron’s birthday came and went with no mark, but he didn’t seem bothered. If anything, he kept nervously looking at Hermione in a way that made her begin to get an uncomfortable stirring in her stomach. She should want him to look at her that way she thought, but instead she just felt awkward at his obvious interest. 

Something else happened Fifth year in between running the DA and frantically studying for her OWLS. Katie Bell had returned from summer vacation newly marked, and Hermione overheard her telling Alicia and Angelina about the beautiful American witch she’d met while visiting her cousin in New York. She’s seen same-sex matches before at Hogwarts, but they’d all been platonic from what she could tell (Though she still had her doubts about Fred and Lee Jordan). Katie threw around the word lesbian with a confidence that made Hermione’s stomach erupt in an uncomfortable swarm of butterflies. 

“Harry,” she stuttered one day as they studied in the Common Room after everyone else had gone to bed. Ron was snoring in the chair near them. “Have you ever known anyone who’s gay?”

He barely looked up from his work. “We all know Katie’s dating a witch Hermione, it’s not a big deal.”

Really, how she managed to be best friends with someone so dense was beyond her sometimes. “Harry, I think I might be.”

That did cause him to pause and look up. “Really? I thought you and Ron…”

She shrugged. “He might, but I don’t think I can like him like that.”

Harry looked at their friend who was still snoring loudly and nodded, “Okay, but you might want to tell him that.”

The casual acceptance reminded her why she wouldn’t want to be best friends with anyone else. 

____________________________________________

The battle at the Ministry left scars far beyond the physical. Hermione could feel the continued shift in Harry that started with the death of Cedric and now felt permanent with Sirius gone. The innocence he somehow had managed to keep despite his horrible childhood was irrevocably extinguished. It also meant their circle was slightly bigger. It now truly included Ginny, as well as the well-meaning Neville and the strange but kindhearted Luna Lovegood. 

Honestly Hermione had never met anyone in her life that frustrated her the way Luna did. Her refusal to use logic and see actual facts instead of just believing what she wanted to was the antithesis to Hermione’s whole way of seeing the world. While Ron seemed mostly amused by the Ravenclaw girl and Harry genuinely respected her, Hermione merely tolerated her addition in their group. She found herself constantly biting her tongue whenever Luna mentioned nargles, or whatever mad creatures she’d decided were to blame for perfectly natural things happening. 

“She’s not so bad Hermione, she’s really very nice.” Ginny insisted over the summer when Luna’s name came up and Hermione couldn’t resist scoffing. 

“She might be nice, but I honestly don’t know how she believes in all the rubbish she goes on about.”

Ginny shook her head with a smile. “Give her a chance Hermione, I think she’ll surprise you.”

Hermione seriously doubted that, but she shifted the conversation to a discussion of Ginny’s quidditch dreams without argument. 

____________________________________________

Despite the public return of Voldemort, the majority of their sixth year was their quietest yet. Hermione spent most of her time continuing to knit hats for the house elves and stewing over Harry’s potion success due to that book. Ron dated Lavender when he realized Hermione wasn’t interested, but as Ron didn’t have a soulmark and Lavender’s didn’t match him they didn’t seem to be all that serious. 

To Hermione’s surprise Harry finally got his act together and began dating Ginny near the end of the year. A month after they began dating Ginny turned 16 and Harry became the first of their trio to get his soulmark. 

Harry’s mark said, _“Do we have quidditch practice tonight?”_

Ginny’s simply said, _“Finally.”_

She did her best to be happy for them. Out of everyone who Hermione knew who had gotten their soulmark, Ginny and Harry were the least insufferable. Since they were already dating nothing really changed, she could just see a weight seem to drop off her best friend’s shoulders. And honestly, he deserved that. 

It couldn’t last however, and after the dust settled Dumbledore was dead, their sanctuary didn’t feel safe anymore, and Harry had broken it off with Ginny to ‘keep her safe’. 

That evening Ginny sat with Hermione on the lawn and Hermione was surprised that the younger girl didn’t cry. 

“Are you going to be okay?”

Ginny smiled sardonically, “I know you all are leaving next year Hermione, and I know I can’t go with you. It sucks, but it’s what has to happen isn’t it?”

Hermione didn’t have a response for that, so she simply leaned her shoulder against her other best friend and hoped it gave her some comfort. 

________________________________________________

The worst moment of Hermione’s life was right after she’d casted the obliviate on her parents and she knew without a doubt that if she was to look them in the eyes they wouldn’t recognize her. Holding her sobs inside as best she could, she took a second to look around one last time before hoisting her bag and walking out of her childhood home for good. 

She arrived at the Burrow in silent tears and explained to a worried Mr. and Mrs. Weasley what she’d done. Mrs. Weasley made her tea and Mr. Weasley let her cry, then they went and got Ginny and Ron and let their children take over. Hermione let Ginny hold her and Ron pat her shoulder awkwardly until it became unbearable and she fell asleep huddled under a blanket on the couch hugging a stuffed bear her dad had bought for her from a vendor in the park one sunny childhood day. 

It seemed like a cruel irony the next morning when she woke up and saw the new marks wrapped around her ankle.


	2. And that's when I knew, it was gonna be you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from It's Always Been You by Katie Pruitt. 
> 
> Same notes as last time.

Hermione stared at the mark in disbelief. 

_It is a rather splendid day isn’t it?_

After her day yesterday she didn’t have the emotional capacity to even be upset about finally getting her soulmark. What she did feel was exasperation. Out of all the banal things, her soulmate would talk to her about the weather. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. 

Hermione had a few faults, and possibly her greatest was her hubris. She knew she was smarter than the average person and she clung to that. In the very few moments when she’d given any thought to her soulmate she’d assumed that they’d be someone intelligent and interesting if they were meant for her. Instead, she’d gotten stuck with someone whose first words to her (or at least first after they were both 16) would be about the weather. 

There wasn’t much time to contemplate the mark or its meaning. Soon they were off collecting Harry and then it was nonstop wedding prep and planning for their mission to find the Horcruxes. There was a war going on. Hermione would have plenty of time to figure out who her soulmate was later.  
She did finally tell Ginny about the mark one morning. 

“You got a mark how long ago and didn’t tell me?” Ginny seemed affronted. 

Hermione rolled her eyes and continued folding the cloth napkins Mrs. Weasley had given them. “It showed up the day after…the day after I got here. I honestly didn’t want to think about it.”

Ginny’s face softened. “Any idea who it is?”

She shook her head. “No idea. But they talk about the weather Gin, can you believe that?”

She scowled at Ginny when the other girl’s only response was to laugh.  
_________________________________

With all the darkness in their world, Bill and Fleur’s wedding seemed like a sparkling, sunlit dream. Hermione looked around the reception and smiled when she saw Ginny laughing with Fred and George while Harry looked on smiling and Ron trying to talk up one of Fleur’s cousins. Things would only get worse from here when they left to go after the Horcruxes. They all needed this break, even if it was only for a day.

She hardly noticed Luna appear beside her, despite the fact that it should have been impossible to miss the younger girl in her luminescent, sun colored dress. 

Luna smiled up at Hermione like she knew exactly what the older girl had been thinking. “It is a rather splendid day isn’t it?”

The world seemed to stop. Hermione turned and stared at Luna with wide eyes. Her heart thumped so loudly she was sure it would break right out of her chest, and she could feel her mark warm as it recognized the words. Her soulmate was Luna Lovegood. She thought she should be upset, but underneath the shock she felt a strange sense of peace. 

Hermione didn’t have time to respond before Kingsley’s patronus burst into the tent and Hermione was apparating away with Harry and Ron, a part of her left in the tent with Luna, wondering if the other girl was safe.  
________________________________

There was no time to contemplate who was or wasn’t her soulmate when they were hunting horcruxes. The only time she would think about it was at night when she was tucked into bed and would find herself running her hand over her mark, which had changed from black to a beautiful gold after her encounter with Luna. She’d heard enough to know that Luna had returned to Hogwarts. She would be as safe as anyone there. 

Hermione, Harry, and Ron broke into the Ministry and escaped with the locket. Ron left them, and Harry and Hermione took their doomed trip to Godric’s Hollow. He returned and destroyed the Horcrux, and Harry was pulled deeper and deeper into the mystery of the symbol in the Tales of Beedle the Bard. 

When Harry suggested they go visit Xenophilius Lovegood Hermione didn’t fight it as much as she could have. A part of her recognized it would be the winter holidays and Luna would be home. Her heart thumped as she thought about seeing her soulmate again. But instead they got the tale of the Deathly Hallows, a narrow escape, and the knowledge that Luna had been captured. Hermione felt her stomach drop out every time she thought about Luna being hurt by the Death Eaters. Or worse. 

A couple of days later she and Ron are sitting on guard duty when she can no longer hold it in. 

“Do you think Luna’s okay?”

Ron looks at her with eyes weary already with too much loss. “I dunno. I hope so.”

They fall silent for a few minutes before Hermione hears herself talk without her having consciously made the decision to do so. “Luna is my soulmate.”

In their almost seven years of friendship she’d never seen Ron so shocked. “Kept that quiet, didn’t you? How long have you known?”

“Since Bill and Fleur’s wedding. I found out right before Kingsley’s patronus came and then, well, you know.”

She expected him to have more questions, but instead he moved next to her, wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and let her go back to worrying in silence.  
________________________________

Hermione didn’t remember saying the words that matched Luna’s soulmark. They’d escaped Malfoy Manor with Hermione’s arm and throat bleeding and her mind struggling to cope with the trauma from the torture. Later, much later, Luna would tell her how Hermione had seen her as she was helped into Shell Cottage and she’d rasped out the words etched across Luna’s collarbone. 

_You’re safe. I’m so glad._

She spent long days in bed being tended to by Fleur, who was a kinder and more effective healer than Hermione ever would have guessed. Luna sat beside her as she rested, holding her hand lightly and telling her long stories about a litany of magical creatures Hermione didn’t think were real. 

For a girl who had spent years alternating between being angry about soulmates and not really believing they existed, the gentle pressure of Luna’s warm hand was more convincing than any textbook. 

When she was finally able to really grasp what was going on around her, she turned to Luna and squeezed her hand. Luna paused her story about the eating habits of Dabberblimps and looked at her with worry barely concealed in her large eyes. “It’s you.”

Luna smiled then, her voice as dreamy as ever, and for the first time Hermione _got it_. “It is.”

“Did you know?” Hermione asked as she ran her fingers over Luna’s palm, wondering why this didn’t feel strange. “At Bill and Fleur’s wedding?”

Her voice was rough, and Luna handed her a glass of water before responding. “I knew my fourth year when we shared a carriage and you didn’t believe me when I told you about nargles. They are real you know. Just like soulmates.”

Hermione frowned. “That was the first time we met.”

Luna only smiled.  
________________________________

The thing about falling in love the first time is that everything has a tendency to fall to the wayside. The thing about falling in love during a war is that there isn’t time to disappear in it. As soon as Hermione was well enough they were knee deep in planning to break into Gringotts and Luna was heading back to the Burrow. 

“You can’t stay?” Hermione asked as she played with Luna’s hand. They were on the front lawn with Dean standing a bit off, waiting for Luna so they could apparate. 

Luna smiled at her and Hermione felt her stomach flip. “This isn’t where I’m supposed to be.”

Hermione nodded. She knew that logically, but for the first time logic didn’t have the same hold on her as it had before. The longer she spent with Luna the more she felt the hard edges of her black and white mentality soften. Rather than waste more time discussing it she pulled the younger girl into a hug and felt that distinct thump of her heart that only happened when Luna was involved. They pulled apart and Hermione saw the maroon of Luna’s soulmark under the edge of her shirt. 

“We’ll see each other soon.” Luna whispered in her dreamiest tone, “I can feel it.”  
________________________________

Time flowed differently when nearly every day was spent barely escaping capture or death. Before Hermione had time to really miss Luna they’d broken into Gringotts, escaped on a dragon, and snuck into Hogwarts. As Harry tried to convince Neville that they weren’t there to liberate Hogwarts from the Carrows, Luna and Dean appeared. It only took seconds for Hermione to run over and pull the younger girl into a hug. She could hear the shocked whispers reverberate around the small room but ignored them.

As they pulled apart Hermione held Luna’s cheek in her hand. “Are you alright?”

Luna smiled, “I’m not the one who rode a dragon.”

They settled back in to listen to Harry, Hermione’s hand safely clasped in Luna’s. When Luna spoke up to tell Harry about the lost diadem of Ravenclaw Hermione was proud of her conviction in the face of the other’s disbelief. Not that she hadn’t had practice, Hermione thought guiltily. She hated to let Luna go so the younger girl could bring Harry to the Ravenclaw common room, but she knew they needed to find the horcrux.

Before the two could leave Hermione pulled Luna aside and swallowed her nerves long enough to kiss her soulmate quickly, relishing that distinctive thump of her heart against her chest. As they leaned away, both smiling, Luna stroked Hermione’s cheek softly. “My brave Hermione. I’ll see you soon.”

“Can you feel it?” Hermione asked, wishing she didn’t sound so scared. 

Luna just smiled and followed Harry out of the tunnel.  
________________________________

Hermione would never have the words to describe the Battle of Hogwarts (as it would later be known). It passed both in a blur and slow motion. Later she would recall still images like muggle photographs. Seeing Fred fall in the corridor. The flames of the fiendfyre as they flew out of the room of requirement. The faces of the fallen laid to rest in the Great Hall. The look on Ginny’s face when they figured out Harry went to turn himself over to Voldemort. Harry’s profile as he stood over Tom Riddle’s body.

Her first glimpse of Luna once it was all over, the girl’s golden hair tangled and matted, dirt and blood across her face, but her eyes incandescently bright. 

She gave Ginny’s shoulder a gentle squeeze and left the Weasley clan to their grief. The journey across the Great Hall to Luna seemed to span a lifetime built of little moments. 

The first time she’d heard about soulmates and scoffed. 

Feeling relieved when she didn’t get her mark on her 16th birthday. 

Crying as she realized her parents would never recognize her again. 

Discovering her soulmark. 

Feeling her whole world shift when she realized her soulmate was Luna. 

And now this moment, as she reached Luna and stopped abruptly feeling awkward again. What was there to say after everything that happened?

Luna seemed to sense her dilemma and caught Hermione’s hand in her own. “You’re safe. I’m so glad.”

Hermione raised her eyebrow. “That’s my line.”

Her heart thumped and settled as she watched the light dance in Luna’s eyes. Around them the world was still falling apart, but she knew they would put it back together. And then there would be a lifetime of little moments. 

Hermione reached out to trace the maroon words on Luna’s collarbone and felt herself begin to smile.

“I guess we can share.”


End file.
